by Phillip G. Goff, GGFA Director of Genetic Genealogy

In 1873 in Milledgeville, GA, USA, a dispute between neighbors led to gunfire. In the aftermath, a 62-year-old Goff female was left critically injured. The news went viral, in an 18th century kind of way.

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The shooting victim’s father-in-law, Asa Goff b. ca. 1785 SC, appears to be part of the Goff family of Edgefield Co., SC. Ironically, the aftermath of an 1857 murder in Texas revealed the structure of this early South Carolina Goff family, as described in the Spring 2016 (pp. 56 – 62) GGFA newsletter. As of 2022, the Y-chromosome haplogroup of the Edgefield Co., SC Goff family has not yet been confirmed. Male line descendants of the Goff family of Edgefield Co., SC are encouraged to do a YDNA test.

Phillip Goff is the co-author, along with Roy L. Lockhart, of The Four Goff Brothers of Western Virginia. Since 2004, he has run the Goff/Gough Surname DNA Study, which today has about 400 participants.

One thought on “Were Reports of Goff’s Death Exaggerated?

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    David Willis Goff says:

    I just came upon this article and this Hezakiah Goff may be a relative of mine. I have yet to confirm who the parents of my great grandfather Noah Goff were. My grandfather, Noah’s eldest son, was Asa Goff and there was a William Asa living in the Edgefield area in the early 1800’s. According to census records, he was living next door to Cynthia Goff in 1850(speculation is that Cynthia was my great,great ganndmother, and William Asa was living with Hezakiah Goff in 1860. In 1870, Hezakiah was in the Milledgeville area. I’ve attempted to trace Cynthia’s kids and the kids of Hezakiah to no avail. Still at a dead end.

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